Pass or fail?

 Colleagues,
 
One way colleges are adapting to the pandemic is by offering students greater latitude in choosing to take classes pass/fail. Many universities have allowed students to take courses pass/fail (P/F) before, but now students can choose more courses and they can make the choice later. So, why would you want to take a course pass/fail instead of for a grade?
 
The answer is economics. Resources such as time and energy are finite. If earning an A would require more time and energy than earning a pass, then choosing the P/F option allows you to reinvest that time and energy somewhere else.
 
This is a critical point.
 
Yesterday we had the first (ever!) APEx webinar for a great group of assistant principals. The focus was on being more intentional about choices and one of the strategies we talked about was “give it a C.” The premise is that some things don’t need to be great, they just need to be good enough.
 
My garden fence didn’t need to be a work of art, it just needed to keep the cat out. 
My dish towel just needs to get stuff dry; I don’t care what it looks like.
My ice cream… well, that’s a different story.
 
You get the point. Some things just need to be completed and the degree of quality above a basic level doesn’t matter.
 
What’s on your to-do list that really doesn’t need to be a work of art, that just needs to be done?
 
Give it a C, and then invest your saved energy into something more important – like developing your people.
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick